Sting
by Leighannamarie
Summary: After coming face to face with Red John, he caused her pain, he hit her, then hit her...she was nothing but everyones metaphoric human punching bag.
1. Sting

**Sting**

Teresa Lisbon hoped this day would never come. The day Jane would finally come face to face with Red John and desperately seek out his revenge against the man who took everything he loved away from him. She had told him countless times in the past few days that he had to let the justice system take care of it, to let it go. He would never agree to that.

Now here she was, up for thirty-three hours with her gun drawn, pointed towards Patrick Jane. Jane had clutched a knife in his hand, knuckles turning white, nails cutting into his palm. Red John had a sickening smile on his face as he held an ordinary knife. Sick bastard.

"Jane, put the knife down," her voice sounded shaky…but bounced off the walls in the small room nonetheless, "Please," a simple plead…in a whisper.

His eyes were filled with pain and longing. Now he was to make a decision that could change everything. His relationship with everyone he was around every single day. But then again, the man in front of him took away _everything. _This man needed to be stopped. Many men would want to get their hands on him, see how he died the same way his victims died. That was what he deserved.

"Jane…"

A cackle was heard throughout the room, resonating through the room, chilling Lisbon down to the bone. This sadistic man before her wanted nothing more then to tear apart Jane's world. He knew that Jane would kill him then and most likely Lisbon would shoot Jane to prevent that.

But he was wrong.

Jane lunged towards the man, letting out a fierce cry, ready to rip this man to shreds. Blood pounded in his ears, fire in his eyes, Red John was not going to leave this room alive. He was sure of it; he would not let that happen. Red John moved back, away from Jane, the blonde consultant lurched towards him again; Red John moved his knife out towards Jane's neck. Out of the corner of his eye, Lisbon pulled the trigger, a bullet exploded and lodged into Red John's chest, immediately making his heart stop.

But a sickening smile still plagued his features as he fell back, knife clattering to the floor, blood pooling around the lame body.

Jane stared, without moving, at the body before him. His knife clattered to the floor and he sunk on his knees. It was all over; Red John was gone, out of his life and no longer a danger.

One thing was missing, though. He never got his revenge. Lisbon _took_ it from him. He thought she was the only one he could trust, the only one that could understand, but he was wrong. He turned around towards the petite agent, fire apparent in his eyes once more. She was in the process of lowering her gun, still frozen in place after what had just happened.

Jane stood up, clutching his hand in a fist and moved towards her quickly. He stopped closely in front of her; she had just set her gun on the ground, watching it before moving her eyes up to meet his.

"Jane, I'm," she was cut short when she felt a sudden stinging sensation build up in her cheek. It spread and suddenly felt warm. Her head moved one way, curls falling in her face. She pushed herself back and held her cheek; pain was evident all over his face.

"He was _mine_," was all he said before he left her in the dark room with the fresh corpse of Red John.

"_He was mine…"_

**Six Hours Later…**

Lisbon sunk down in her office chair. She wanted to cry. Honest to God she wanted to cry out to her mother, something she had not done in years. She wanted all the hurt and pain to be taken away from her. She felt as if she was _born _to just be a _human punching bag. _Ever since her death, people have been hurting her mentally and physically. There was no end to that, there never would be.

She leaned forward in her chair; a few tears fell from her eyes. It would never be the same, he would hate her, want her away from him. She took a deep breath, her body shook where she sat. Lisbon fisted her hands in her hair and twisted, feeling the tug and pulling sensation. She then let out a shallow breath.

"Lisbon?" It was Minelli. She looked up quickly, jumping slightly in her chair, "I wanted to inform you that," he paused, searching her eyes, "Jane gave me this," he slapped it down on her desk. She did not need to look at it to know what it was.

Resignation letter, she had been expecting it.

"Go home," he told her.

"Yes sir," her voice shook, she didn't care for the first time.

As she lie in bed that night, she kept her eyes focused on the ceiling. Something she would do with Jane, or 'Patrick' as she called him would do after a passionate round of lovemaking, or that's what she thought of it. She would rest her head on his chest and listen to his heartbeat, her own personal lullaby. She would draw circles on his chest, place soft, loving kisses on his flesh. He would run his hands through her hair, she would then nuzzle his neck as he whispered '_I love you'_ ever so softly, as if someone was watching and he had only wanted her to know.

She loved him too, she still did. That is why she could not let him kill Red John.

The next day when she arrived at work, there was another letter on her desk, from _him. _

_Lisbon,_ she took note of the usage of her last name.

_Goodbye…_

It was written in his neat, cursive script. She clutched it tightly as if a lifeline. He was gone, he had left her just like that, all because she tried to protect him…He had told her he would let justice handle it…after she had told him about how she encountered the college student that killed her mother, the main reason for all her pain. He had _promised _her he would never bring anymore hurt into her life. She was a fool to trust him.

She was such a fool.

**Three Years Later…**

Lisbon sighed as she rolled the window up to her department issued SUV, it was night. It happened once more, another Red John copycat. Some sick man wanted this to 'stay alive'. He had even made that apparent by writing it on a piece of paper, but the guy forgot about the possibility that his fingerprints could be on the paper he had given the CBI. They had an ID, they were pursuing it, and his name was Roger Flemming.

She pulled the SUV into the driveway, cut the engine and drew her gun, placing it behind her back incase of him observing her from the high window. She looked back as Cho arrived in the sedan behind her; she nodded before heading towards the door.

She knocked once, then twice, no answer. Cho appeared at her side, gun drawn. A crash was heard from the side of the house, a window was broken. Through the dark night, Lisbon saw a retreating figure fleeing the house. Lisbon took off, quickly running after him, down the long narrow street.

"Police, stop!" she yelled after the hooded figure.

He stopped and turned towards her quickly; she continued to move after him. A glittering shine was seen through the night, she stopped abruptly, knowing what it was, a gun, she raised the gun in his direction.

"Drop it!" she yelled, finger down on the trigger and prepared to shoot.

"He lives!"

Three shots were heard, two bodies fell.

Lisbon clutched her stomach as she felt blood pour out of the open wound. The other shot had missed her completely, lodging into a nearby tree. She closed her eyes at the pain. Blood slipped through her fingers, stained them red. She fell to her knees before falling down on her back.

"Boss!" she felt as if she was underwater, her vision was blurred as dark spots appeared. Everything was going black; her senses were being cut off. She spasmed, then everything went black as she gazed down at her hand, covered in crimson blood…

Her eyes opened briefly, "Kara," her daughter, was the last word she spoke before she was completely gone…

…

Grace Van Pelt sat down at her desk and observed everyone's reactions towards the death of their boss, Teresa Lisbon. Only a few hours ago she had been notified about Lisbon's demise, it was a never ending thought that entered everyone's minds.

She looked over her computer screen and at the two and a half year old girl, sitting on the old leather couch in the bullpen. She had soft dark reddish-brown curls framing her soft pale skin. Her bright bluish-green eyes looking down at the ground as she clutched the soft white lamb to her chest. She wanted her mother. Grace's heart went out to the small child, losing her mother at such a young age, it wasn't easy.

On a usual day Kara would be vibrant and happy, smiling at every little thing and driving her mother half way insane fifty percent of the time. She was a sweet little girl that did not deserve this, mother dead, father out of the picture.

Now back to the ongoing search of Patrick Jane…

**One Month Later…**

Patrick Jane walked onto the street during the busiest time of the day in New York City. He moved forward, head held up high as he walked towards Grand Central. The constant honking of the yellow cabs caused him to turn and smile slightly, just another day in the Big Apple.

But he stopped when he saw the one person he never thought he would see ever again. Virgil Minelli. The man stood before him in an expensive suit, hands grasping one another in front of him. He did not appear to be in a decent mood.

"Virgil," he said nodding.

Minelli's face did not change, he continued the same look he had before…Jane now saw sadness in his eyes, "She's gone, Jane," he did not understand.

"Who?" he leaned forward.

"Teresa," Jane couldn't believe it, he wanted to say no, say it didn't happen, "She died last month," he never thought this would happen, she would be alive, she would _always_ be alive. She wasn't meant to die before him, not yet. Just never.

"How?" he breathed, tears and anger welling up inside, about ready to meet their breaking point, "What happened?" he moved closer towards Minelli, "Why wasn't she protected?"

"A Red John copycat shot her, Cho couldn't get there fast enough to intervene," Jane didn't want to believe it, it just couldn't be true. This _had_ to be a joke, nothing but a sick joke. Teresa Lisbon was alive and well, not underneath the cold ground, motionless.

"Jane, there's one more thing."

He looked up at his old boss, "You have a daughter."

"I have a what?"

Minelli didn't say anything, he reached inside his jacket and pulled out a photograph and handed it over to Jane. There was _his_ Lisbon holding onto a small little girl. The girl had pale skin with curly brown hair with a slight reddish tinge. Her bright eyes and large smile showed how happy she was. Her pink cheeks just added to how innocent she appeared.

"Her name is Kara Victoria Hope Jane," Jane fingered the edges of the photograph and swallowed the lump in his throat, "Born October 9, two and a half years ago."

She had been pregnant, and he had left her.

Hit her.

"When do we leave?"

"Right now."

…

Jane nervously ran his fingers over his CBI visitor's pass. This was not what he would consider a casual visit. Minelli stood by his side, resuming the same position he had in Gran Central Station. The doors opened and Minelli walked out, Jane cautiously behind him. His former boss opened the doors to the bullpen and stepped through them, Jane followed.

Cho was the only one who turned towards him, the man got up and moved towards him, placing a hand on his arm, nodding and leaving the bullpen. Rigsby, clutching a sandwich, did the same, following his friend.

Jane then looked before him, his beautiful daughter, Kara sat on his old couch next to Grace, who was busy reading her a Doctor Seuss book. Kara looked even more like her mother in person.

Minelli cleared his throat, capturing Grace's attention. Her eyes widened as she took in Jane's appearance. She then looked down at Kara and picked her up lightly and moved towards the two men.

"Jane," Grace spoke softly, "Why did you leave?"

"I couldn't stay here…"

"Daddy?" Kara's soft, sleepy voice was heard through the room.

"Yes?" Jane asked softly, more amazed then anything else.

"My uh, mommy say you come."

Grace readjusted Kara on her hip and smoothed a loose strand of hair, "She's quite observant for a young child, plus Lisbon would show her pictures of you, you haven't changed."

The first time Kara was placed in Jane's arms he cried.

How could he have left Teresa?

**Wow, I've been in quite the angsty mood. This thought has been in my mind (as well as with others) and I thought I would go ahead and write it out. Might write a follow up on this one, might not. Depends, maybe a "what if Lisbon actually lived?" All endless possibilities. **

**Please Review, they are like chocolate and licorice, very therapeutic. **


	2. Alternate

**I folded**

**Sting**

Lisbon sighed as she rolled the window up to her department issued SUV, it was night. It happened once more, another Red John copycat. Some sick man wanted this to 'stay alive'. He had even made that apparent by writing it on a piece of paper, but the guy forgot about the possibility that his fingerprints could be on the paper he had given the CBI. They had an ID, they were pursuing it, and his name was Roger Flemming.

She pulled the SUV into the driveway, cut the engine and drew her gun, placing it behind her back incase of him observing her from the high window. She looked back as Cho arrived in the sedan behind her; she nodded before heading towards the door.

She knocked once, then twice, no answer. Cho appeared at her side, gun drawn. A crash was heard from the side of the house, a window was broken. Through the dark night, Lisbon saw a retreating figure fleeing the house. Lisbon took off, quickly running after him, down the long narrow street.

"Police, stop!" she yelled after the hooded figure.

He stopped and turned towards her quickly; she continued to move after him. A glittering shine was seen through the night, she stopped abruptly, knowing what it was, a gun, she raised the gun in his direction.

"Drop it!" she yelled, finger down on the trigger and prepared to shoot.

"He lives!"

Three shots were heard, two bodies fell.

Lisbon clutched her stomach as she felt blood pour out of the open wound. The other shot had missed her completely, lodging into a nearby tree. She closed her eyes at the pain. Blood slipped through her fingers, stained them red. She fell to her knees before falling down on her back.

"Boss!" she felt as if she was underwater, her vision was blurred as dark spots appeared. Everything was going black; her senses were being cut off. She spasmed, then everything went black as she gazed down at her hand, covered in crimson blood…she gasped and spasmed once more, limbs twitching.

Her eyes opened briefly, "Kara," her daughter, was the last word she spoke before she slowly faded into black…

**Twenty Minutes Later…**

Nurse Jameson fiddled with the pen between her fingers, it slipped and she bent over quickly picking it up. Her glasses slid down the bridge of her nose, she took the time to momentarily push them back up her face, looking around to be sure no one saw her little slip up.

Suddenly the doors burst open, paramedics running through the halls clutching a gurney with a petite woman. Blood was everywhere. Nurse Jameson threw her pen to the side, instantly knowing they would need more help. She ran towards them at her highest speed, almost colliding with the muscular state agent currently covered in blood, this caused her attention to momentarily go to him.

"We're losing her!" Jameson slipped the mask over her mouth and replaced it with a bag, squeezing it to be sure the agent sustained enough oxygen in her body.

"Get the paddles now!"

She was dying…

**One Hour Later…**

Cho paced the corridors of the long hospital, his hand holding onto his button down shirt, clutching it tightly as he waited for the team to arrive. Despite his ever-stoic persona, he fought the urge to tremble and cry. Teresa Lisbon, his boss was dying faster than ever. Doctors were telling him it would take a miracle for her to live, the bullet had caused serious damage to her internally, despite it going through her body.

But the doctors would not tell him what he wanted to _really _hear.

Soon Rigsby and Van Pelt, along with Kara, came from the corner to the left. Kara was asleep on Rigsby shoulder, clutching her stuffed bunny. The two younger agents wore weary and sad expressions on their faces.

"How is she?" Grace spoke softly.

Cho shook his head, it was too early to tell, "She will pull through, she has to, she's Lisbon," Rigsby was the one who spoke.

She has to be…

Grace slowly sat down on the bench next to the wall, covering her hand to her mouth, she squeezed her eyes shut and trembled, shuddered at the very thought that her mentor might not pull through. Rigsby now sat beside her, placing his free arm on her shoulder in a failed, but kind gesture to comfort her.

Cho placed his hands on his hips and watched them; he shook his head and walked away.

**Two Hours Later…**

They took turns holding a now awake Kara Jane. The young girl looked around at the surroundings and asked questions wanting to know desperately where her mother was and why they were in the 'creepy store'. Grace now had her on her lap, trying to talk to her about the possibility of getting her some jello from the cafeteria. Kara's eyes brightened, but then dulled once more at the very thought of getting food from the 'creepy store'.

Rigsby now returned from the cafeteria, a cheese and lunchmeat sandwich clutched tightly in his hand with a bite already missing. He stopped slightly, taking in Kara's alertness. When he left she was sound asleep on Grace's lap, now she was being so…Jane-like in some way.

…

Cho crossed his arms over his chest as he listened to what the surgeon was telling him. The only reason why this man was even talking to him was because he flashed his badge slightly, but whatever it would take to get more information.

"We had to remove the spleen…we're not done, we cannot operate on her until she becomes more stable," he understood completely, as long as she would live, "At this moment, I'm not sure if she'll make it, but we're doing all we can."

Cho wanted to punch him.

One of his best friends was dying and this man was sugarcoating everything and expecting him to agree with him and thank him for doing all he could. He was most certainly not! This man was following protocol to sugarcoat everything to someone who was not family. Who else was he going to tell, Kara? No, she's not old enough. Kara is the only family Lisbon biologically has.

"Thank you for your help," Cho walked away quickly.

It was not until another fourteen hours until she was out of surgery completely. Her team alongside her daughter stayed while Minelli made direct phone calls for a Patrick Jane. Lisbon was in a coma and in no condition to care for her small child.

**Four Days and Eight Hours Later…**

Lisbon felt a dull ache from her abdomen. It then slowly started pulsating and flaring up to become an intense fire. She wanted to grit her teeth together and grasp her stomach, but she felt too weak to move. Her small finger twitched slightly and she scrunched her eyes shut tightly. Her throat felt dry, scratchy.

She opened her eyes just a crack and noticed a light, it was dimmed slightly, but bright enough to hurt or cause pain. She wrinkled her nose and turned her head slightly.

_Beep….Beep…_

She heard one of the most annoying sounds in her life; she figured she was in a hospital, thanks to the memories flooding back into her mind. Roger Flemming pointing a gun at her, and then remembering nothing. She would bet anything that she had been shot. Now she was able to lift her hand, she groaned and tried to shift but hissed at the sudden pain.

Low tones of vibration…talking was actually heard. Soon a door slid open and a plump nurse walked in with a syringe, she administered and stayed, monitoring her for a few moments. Soon Lisbon felt herself drift off into sleep as the pain subsided away.

**One Day Later…**

She was awake, more alertly this time. Grace sat in the chair next to her wearing a worried expression on her face. Lisbon adjusted her head slightly and squeezed her eyes shut as the bright light continued its assault on her sensitive eyes. She wanted to open her mouth to speak, but her throat was dry.

"Boss," Van Pelt leaned forward, touching her arm slightly, "How are you feeling?"

Lisbon nodded, she felt a dull ache in her abdomen, and it was to be expected of the wound.

"I think I'll be okay," she finally spoke, her voice was hoarse and rough, "Where's my baby?" she brought one of her hands up to her throat and rubbed it slightly.

"Kara's with Rigsby, he finally convinced her to get ice cream downstairs," Lisbon smiled, her daughter had to know every little fact before proceeding to do one action.

Maybe everything would be okay…

**One Month Later…**

Patrick Jane walked onto the street during the busiest time of the day in New York City. He moved forward, head held up high as he walked towards Grand Central. The constant honking of the yellow cabs caused him to turn and smile slightly, just another day in the Big Apple.

But he stopped when he saw the one person he never thought he would see ever again. Virgil Minelli. The man stood before him in an expensive suit, hands grasping one another in front of him. He did not appear to be in a decent mood.

"Virgil," he said nodding.

Minelli nodded, acknowledging Jane, but his face remained the same. Jane could see he was being more hesitant. Something had happened, "Lisbon needs you," everything stopped when her name was mentioned. Never again did he ever think he would hear about her again in his life.

But he was still curious…

"What happened?"

"She was shot in the line of duty a little over a month ago," he nearly choked; she was _not_ supposed to _ever_ get seriously injured. It did not seem right! Teresa Lisbon was supposed to be invincible.

"How did it happen?" he was still recuperating from the initial shock…she had always been so careful when it came to her job.

"A Red John copycat shot her, Cho, luckily got there fast enough to intervene," Jane didn't want to believe it, it just couldn't be true.

"Jane, there's one more thing."

He looked up at his old boss, "You have a daughter."

"I have a what?"

Minelli didn't say anything, he reached inside his jacket and pulled out a photograph and handed it over to Jane. There was _his_ Lisbon holding onto a small little girl. The girl had pale skin with curly brown hair with a slight reddish tinge. Her bright eyes and large smile showed how happy she was. Her pink cheeks just added to how innocent she appeared.

"Her name is Kara Victoria Hope Jane," Jane fingered the edges of the photograph and swallowed the lump in his throat, "Born October 9, two and a half years ago."

She had been pregnant, and he had left her.

Hit her.

"When do we leave?"

"Right now."

…

Jane nervously ran his fingers over his CBI visitor's pass. This was not what he would consider a casual visit. Minelli stood by his side, resuming the same position he had in Gran Central Station. The doors opened and Minelli walked out, Jane cautiously behind him. His former boss opened the doors to the bullpen and stepped through them, Jane followed.

Cho was the only one who turned towards him, the man got up and moved towards him, placing a hand on his arm, nodding and leaving the bullpen. Rigsby, clutching a sandwich, did the same, following his friend.

Jane then looked before him, his beautiful daughter, Kara sat on his old couch next to Grace, who was busy reading her a Doctor Seuss book. Kara looked even more like her mother in person.

He looked around the bullpen; Lisbon was nowhere in sight. He wondered why Minelli would bring him here if Lisbon was not at this time present in the CBI building. To him it did not seem logical.

He turned towards Minelli, "Where is she?" his voice was on the soft side with a touch of a firm demand.

"Home, she needs to rest," Cho said as he walked by towards the small kitchenette. By his tone, Jane sensed the animosity his old friend felt towards him because of his abrupt departure.

"Jane," Grace spoke softly as she caught his attention, "Why did you leave?"

"I couldn't stay here…"

"Daddy?" Kara's soft, sleepy voice was heard through the room.

"Yes?" Jane asked softly, more amazed then anything else.

"My uh, mommy say you come."

Grace readjusted Kara on her hip and smoothed a loose strand of hair, "She's quite observant for a young child, plus Lisbon would show her pictures of you, you haven't changed."

The first time Kara was placed in Jane's arms he cried.

How could he have left Teresa?

They created a beautiful living thing without his knowledge and yet he has already missed out on two years of her life. He felt guilty, he felt as if he did not deserve Kara.

For once he did not know the answer to that. He was sure he never would.

…

He stood in front of the door to the all-too-familiar apartment of Teresa Lisbon. He raised his hand and knocked slightly, not wanting to use the doorbell incase she was asleep. Like Cho had said earlier, she needed her rest.

No one answered the door; he breathed in a sigh and turned to leave. As he was about to go down the slightly steep stairs he heard the creak of a wooden door open. He jerked his attention back and watched as a petite woman wrapped in a blanket came out and looked around. Her _long _dark hair tousled. Her green eyes caught his with such a surprised look.

"Jane?"

"Teresa," he nodded in her direction, unmoving from his current position, "How've you been?"

Her eyes narrowed, "What the hell are you doing here?" she stepped out further, hesitantly though due to the lack of shoes, and crossed her arms over her chest, "Why did you just decide to waltz back into my life?"

"Minelli told me what happened."

"**A lot** has happened, _Jane_," she scoffed bitterly.

He nodded his head, "I know, I'm sorry."

She stepped forward, charge more likely. Apparently apologizing made everything worse off for him. It made her livid, "You're _sorry?_ Do you think I can just forgive you for walking out of my life? Out of _my_ daughter's life? I don't think I can accept that, _Jane,"_ she spun around and walked back into the apartment, slamming the door shut leaving Jane there standing outside in shock. He had never seen her act like that, and truthfully…he deserved it.

But there was the ongoing subject in his heart stating how she killed the one man who would make him feel…alive again. What he did not realize was that _she_ had made him feel alive as she gave him her love.

…

Teresa Lisbon was upset, not many people could do that. Patrick Jane, former fraud celebrity psychic extraordinaire and CBI consultant. He walked out of her life over two years ago and thought he could just walk back in, he was wrong. She refused to let him believe that everything would just go his way. It was how she planned to save herself and her child. Kara deserved better than that. Jane was selfish if he thought he could come back into her life.

But there was still a small sense of guilt creeping its way back into her mind. She kept on trying to tell herself that Jane needed to know she would not accept him back in, at this time it did not seem as if it would have been the greatest idea.

Wrapping herself tighter into the warm depths of her blanket, she took in a sigh and felt a small tear run down the side of her face. She reached up and brushed it away quickly and made her way back towards her sofa.

**One Day Later…**

He was determined…

He was not going to let their past get into the way of their future. Kara has already seen him, she knows that her father is alive and she deserves to have him around her. Lisbon too deserves better than what she has been given throughout her life. She has lived a life of pain and despair, she needed time to live the way she wanted to, they way she was destined to. That was with Kara and…_him._

He refused to live without her.

After all theses years of searching for the man who killed his wife and child, he realized how empty he felt. Without Lisbon's love he felt as if he had no purpose. If he was not with her…then what was the point of living? She meant everything to him, he wanted her and he was going to try hard to get her back.

He lurched upwards from the hotel bed he was occupying and grabbed his rental car keys. He slipped out of the door and charged down the hall, keeping his arms at his sides. He wanted to put the past behind him and move forward, he needed to seek redemption and live on…his wife and daughter would have wanted that much from him, to be happy. The way he was going on now was obviously not how they would have wanted him to live. If they were able to see him now, they would be worried for his well-being.

They were gone…they have been for the past eight and a half years…

Jane gripped the steering wheel tighter and leaned his head down upon it. Everything had become more and more complicated as life kept on ticking forward. Life was messy and he knew that, always had since he was a child.

His confidence was ebbing away, he was thinking about turning back and scheduling the next flight back to New York and live out the duration of his life in misery and regret. But he knew he would not be able to live like that.

He pressed his foot down on the accelerator and the car lurched forward towards Lisbon's apartment. It would be only a few minutes before he reached his destination.

He weaved in and out of traffic, his mind now officially set on giving Teresa Lisbon a piece of his mind. Telling her the absolute truth and refusing to take no for an answer. He was not going to leave Sacramento without her love. It took him years to find her, he then lost her for two years…she nearly died and now he had to make up the lost time. He had to cherish her…her life, body, and mind. He was determined to be good to her. To make his family proud…

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a car speeding towards him. He gripped the steering wheel tighter and made the effort to move, but it was too late. The car hit him at a full force, pushing his smaller rental car across the road and into another. Glass splintered then shattered, embedding tiny particles into the side of his face and neck. The weight of the steering wheel hit him as the airbag refused to deploy. The horn blared and the two-layer glass windshield crunched and groaned in protest. He felt the warm trickle of blood run down his head and drip onto the collar of his white cotton shirt. His vision was blurred…people were shouting to call 911.

Sirens were heard off into the distance and he felt as if he was out of his body…like everything had been detached. He tried to move but gasped as the pain moved up his leg. He wanted to scream it hurt so badly. A lone tear fell down the side of his face, faster than the slow crimson blood. A light tapping sound was heard before his world went black.

…

The first thing she heard was the high-pitched chime of her cell phone as it buzzed across the table. She sat her head up and rubbed the back of her head and stretched, yawning in the process. Light streamed in, flickering across her features like fire. She breathed in before reaching out and picking up her phone not even looking at the caller ID.

"Lisbon," she yawned again, using her hand to stifle her small yawn that ended with a small squeaking noise.

"Boss?" It was Van Pelt…what would she want at seven in the morning?

"Boss there's been an accident."

Lisbon shot out of her bed as quickly as she could, "What happened? How bad?" she grit her teeth as a dull ache in her abdomen made itself known, she gasped slightly and pulled back.

"It's Jane, he was hit by a drunk driver," the phone nearly slipped from her grasp…images of her past flashed before her eyes, remembering her childhood. Losing her mother at twelve because of the bastard's inability to call a cab gave her such a foul outlook when it came to drunk driver incidents.

The pain that followed that day was still fresh in her mind; to her brothers it was just like the day before. They lived their lives without looking back. They do not remember their mother as vividly as she does, when she was alive they would do things that just an ordinary mother and daughter would do, that was back when life was easy. Still to this day she finds herself on occasion sitting on the floor clutching her mother's picture tightly to her chest and sobbing until everything hurt.

"Boss?"

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, "I'm here, where is he?"

"I'll pick you up…"

"No, I'll be fine."

There was some hesitance before Van Pelt gave her the exact hospital, "Same hospital that Kara was born in," with that, Lisbon knew exactly what she was talking about. She quickly hung up and pulled on a pair of jeans underneath her large football jersey. She brushed her hair with her fingers and jogged lightly into Kara's room.

Carefully she woke her baby up and prepared her for the coming events. Kara did not understand fully of what was happening, Lisbon would never expect her to.

The whole time Kara held on tightly to her little white bunny.

…

He heard laughter. He turned and saw his wife running after his daughter on the beach. Both were dressed in long white dresses, both had flowing long blonde hair bouncing off their shoulders as they moved on top of the sand. He ran after them in desperate hopes to catch them.

They did not seem to see him, they endlessly ran into the distance further and further away from him. He could not stop himself from running toward them. He mover faster, water brushing up on his legs as he ran through a small wave leaving wet marks on his pants. He pushed out of the direction of the waves, moving with such a desperation that no one could compare to.

He reached out towards them, hoping they would see him.

"Patrick…" he stopped and turned.

There before him was Lisbon. Her long hair cascading around her face, her green eyes brighter than ever. A gentle wind blew, her dress and long hair moved in the same direction. His heart moved faster and faster, the sudden need to move onto her grew.

"Patrick," she moved closer to him and when she finally stood before him, her finger brushed across his lips as she stood on the tip of her toes and brushed her lips across his. He pushed her hair behind her ears and cupped her chin delicately in his calloused hands. She nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck lovingly, "Don't die…

…_Because I love you…"_

…

She grasped his hand and leaned down towards his ear, breathing in and letting a tear fall down her cheeks, "Please don't die, because I love you," she squeezed his hand and let the tear fall onto the white sheets of the bed and pulled back to look at him.

He had been out of surgery for only a mere couple of hours. His face was marred with bruises and cuts, making his skin stand out in contrast of the white sheets wrapped around him. She could no longer take seeing people in pain because of her, he was coming to see _her_, she felt as if it were her fault that he was lying in the hospital bed.

She got up from her position and reached behind her, unclasping the golden cross that hung around her neck and placed it in his hand. She closed it tightly and brought his knuckles to her lips. She pressed a light kiss upon them and then ran his hand down her cheek.

"Mommy?" she turned and saw her daughter, clutching onto the hand of Van Pelt and her other hand clutching onto her stuffed bunny, "Daddy all right?" her large green eyes full of worry.

Kara did not wait until her mother answered her small question. Instead she moved away from Van Pelt's grasp and moved towards the bed. She climbed up on the nearby chair and watched him. She moved forward and placed the bunny next to him and kissed the bunny's head then her daddy's cheek.

"Wake up…please…daddy," there was silences when Van Pelt moved out of the room and shut the door behind her. Lisbon turned back towards her daughter and watched her intently, "I never had a daddy b'fore," tears welded up in Lisbon's eyes as she watched every action before her, "I want you to stay with me…pwease?" she started crying.

She cried for her father to come back.

…

Hours later he finally woke to an empty room. He shifted his weight, feeling the pain in his ribs. He looked at the ceiling. Watching the distinctive holes in the ceiling before he heard the annoying little beeping sound telling him he was alive. He shut his eyes and shifted. He felt something next to his arm. He sat up, wincing once more and picked it up and examined it, a stuffed bunny.

Kara's stuffed bunny.

He gazed at it, she had been here…

Then something in his hand made its presence known. He felt it, the metal with distinctive marks and indentations, crafted with such fine hands to be made into a beautiful piece of metal.

Her cross.

More importantly…she had been here.

He leaned back into his pillow and looked down to press the 'call' button. Within a few moments a nurse walked in, "What can I get you?" she sounded annoyed, apparently working in a hospital was nothing more than just a job to her.

"I'm looking for my friend," the nurse nodded and crossed her arms.

"What do you want me to do about it?"

All of a sudden a not so petite woman dressed in dark blue scrubs walked in, "Perkins, Mr. Walsh would like you to refill his water," Perkins turned to glare at the woman before she stalked out of the room.

"Don't mind her, she doesn't like working this late at night," the woman poured a small plastic cup of ice water and handed it to him, "I'm Nurse Jameson."

"Patrick," he took a long gulp, emptying the cup, "My friend was here…"

"Ahh, Tess," he raised an eyebrow, "I helped save her life when she was shot last month, she hated the hospital stay but she grew on me. Kara is a sweet little thing too."

"Do you know where she is?"

"In the next room, asleep, she's been up all night and it is not good for her recovery," she poured him another cup and handed it to him. He did the same to the previous, "You sir, have seven broken ribs, broken clavicle, fourteen stitches, I could just go on!" she chuckled slightly.

The door opened and both occupants turned and saw a petite figure step in, wrapping her arms tighter around her body. There was Teresa Lisbon, clad in only a pair of jeans and a football jersey. The same one she wore millions of time around him.

"Patrick," she breathed as she moved towards him.

Nurse Jameson moved in front of her, holding a hand up, "Honey, he's delicate, so are you, now be careful," Lisbon smiled slightly, moving away from Jameson and embraced Jane in a tight hug. The heart monitor quickened.

He returned the gesture, breathing in her scent deeply, missing it, "I love you," she whispered not his ear, "So much."

"Its mutual," he pulled away from her after hearing the door slide shut, "I love you so much," he then moved forward and kissed her on the lips. It was full of all the love and passion that they had buried deep inside over the past couple of years. He wanted to pull her closer, feel every inch of her. He wanted to hold her in his arms until he died.

The rapid beeping noise made it feel like he was going to of a heart attack.

But when her body connected with his a little bit more firmly, he felt the pain; he hissed and refused to push her away. She had to be the one, despite his protesting whine, to pull away.

"Are you okay?" she brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"I'll be fine," he wanted more of her, "Just a couple of bruises, that's all."

She crossed her arms over her chest and backed away, "I'll be fine, C'mere," he took her hand delicately in his and pulled her towards him. He pulled her onto the bed and motioned for her to lie down. He move over, wincing lightly and pulled her towards him. She rested her head on his good side and draped her arms around him, being sure to keep her touches light.

He moved his arms around her hips, occasionally pushing a hand up the back of the jersey and running over her back. Feeling the cool and creamy skin underneath his fingertips made him hum.

Hum a perfect lullaby as it lulled her into a deep sleep.

…

**Five Months Later…**

"Daddy! Push me!" Kara cried as she climbed into the swings. An elated smile was plastered to her features as she wiggled with excitement. He came up behind her and pushed her, making her soar high up. She squealed in joy and shook her legs, "Higher daddy!"

He laughed, everything just felt so right at this moment. Nothing could take this away. His life went from the worst ever imaginable to probably the best as it had ever been in the past few years.

On looking the scene was his beloved fiancé, Teresa Lisbon. She stood on top of the wood chips a few feet away from them, clutching his jacket and their daughter's stuffed bunny. Pure joy was featured on its face, and Jane hoped that it would be forever noticeable, because it made her look so beautiful.

Once Kara had lost interest in the swings, she found her way towards chasing the birds, waving her arms and pretending to fly away with them. Jane had soon moved towards Lisbon, picking up her hands in his and leaning down to press a kiss to her forehead then down to her lips tenderly.

"I love you." She whispered.

"I love you more…."

**This took me about two weeks to write, give or take. This thing kept getting longer and longer. This part is about 15 pages alone on my computer! I have never written anything with this length and posted it before! **

**Please review, I really want to know how everyone feels about this. **

**-Leigha**


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